Church Fundraising: 10 Simple and Fun Ideas

Churches are well-known for their humanitarian activities and community outreach. The whole year, members of churches do charitable work for people who were in need. 

To ensure they continue their vital works, churches need to raise funds. However, generating the most profitable church fundraising idea is quite challenging. On top of that, traditional methods of fundraising do not always yield the expected result. That’s why in recent times, most organizers are trying to implement simple and unique fundraising ideas for churches, to collect donations.

Whether you are a member or volunteer of a charity or a non-profit professional looking for church fundraising ideas to raise funds, this blog is for you. Join us and discover 10 exciting fundraising ideas for a church to support your non-profit organizations.

10 simple church fundraising ideas

Every penny raised from donations brings us one step closer to creating a better world. So it’s important to find effective church fundraising ideas to attract new donors. Here, we listed 10 simple and fun church fundraising ideas.

• Host a talent show
• Arrange a movie night
• Religious art exhibition 
• Set up a coffee shop
• Walkathon or fun run
• Handmade craft sales
• Seed sales for gardeners 
• Historical church visit
• Candlelit prayer evening
• Donor appreciation dinner

Host a talent show 

Every person has talent, whether dancing, singing, or even magic tricks. But for lack of the right opportunity, not everyone gets the chance to show their talent. If you host a talent show on your church premises, then members and volunteers of your church will be able to showcase their skills.

Discuss with the members and volunteers about the show and let them decide in which category they want to perform. Based on their opinion, make a show plan, select a date, and start an announcement. Charge an amount as an entry fee for the audience and a registration fee for participation. It’s not just about raising funds, it could be fun also.

Arrange a movie night

Organizing a family-friendly movie night gives chances for people to spend some quality time with their loved ones. However, churches are not allowed for all types of movies, you can add these movies to your list such as Soul Surfer, Miracle from Heaven, A Light in Darkness, The Grace Card, and more.

Hosting this movie night doesn’t need a big screen, If your church has a projector and sound system, then you can do so. Charge for tickets and to raise more funds, you can set up an arrangement for yummy snacks and drinks. Schedule this movie night on the weekend so more people can join. You can also arrange this movie show at the local theatre and ask them to give some discount as you raise funds for charity.

Religious art exhibition 

Art can touch the soul. That’s why organizing a religious art exhibition is a great church fundraising idea to raise funds. First, collect some religious art pieces, display them, and create a serene environment during the exhibition. To give a better experience, play soft religious music in the background and offer refreshments. 

Engage with visitors by talking with them about the artwork and the reason behind arranging this exhibition. Charge an entry fee and even offer these art pieces for sale.

Set up a coffee shop

Setting up a coffee shop near church can be a regular fundraising idea. Choose the right place to set up this shop and to become eye-catchy, decorate it with different colour themes. Put a donation box in the corner of the coffee shop along with a good massage, if anyone wants to donate then they can easily do that.

Along with coffee, add hot chocolate, cupcakes, pastries, brownies, and others to the menu. In the festive seasons, provide offers like buy one, get one free, and special discounts on selected items. Ultimately, this will help to engage customers and increase the sales rate of your coffee shop.

Walkathon or fun run

People appreciate things that benefit them. A walkathon and fun run would be a unique church fundraising idea, as it is good for the health of the participants. Plan for a walkathon and fun run events, where people who participate can get some gifts after completing a certain distance. This event promotes fitness as well as community involvement at the same time.

In the end, appreciate everyone for their effort and host a small ceremony to honor people who have reached their goals. Charge a small fee for the participant.

Handmade craft sales

Crafting is fun for many people, and selling handmade crafts can be an excellent church fundraising idea. This lets people have unique and useful items while supporting the church. It not only helps to raise funds but also allows members to show their talent and creativity.

Involve the church community in making handmade crafts and encourage their participation. Then organize a craft fair where members of the church can showcase their products for sale. You can choose craft items like paintings, jewelry, pottery, candles, knits, and more to sell. At this fair, you also host a workshop where people can learn how to make handicrafts.

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Seed sale for gardeners

What is better than watching trees grow from the tiny seeds? Many people are passionate about gardening, and they like to collect different types of seeds for their garden. Seed selling for gardeners is an effective, and meaningful idea to raise funds for the church, as it promotes love and care for the environment.

Start with searching for various types of seeds, connect with the local nursery, and ask them to provide unique types of flowers, fruits, and vegetable seeds. For better sales, pack them well and add a short note as an instruction with each packet.

Historical church visit

Many historical churches around the world hold many secrets, significant culture, and religious importance. People often like to visit new places, it will be more pleasurable for them if it is an old church tour. 

First, search for a unique church, that has amazing architectural features and remarkable stories. Then fix a date for the tour, find an expert guide who knows the history of the church, and tell them to share these stories with visitors. The tour can end with some snacks and drinks. Charge a small fee for the tour, you can also provide a special discount for students.

Candlelit prayer evening

Candlelit prayer provides a spiritual experience to the individual and also gives a sense of inner peace. It is one of the church fundraising ideas that is simple but valued a lot for many congregations.

Turn off all lights on the church premises and set candles everywhere. Give the people who are attending this prayer a candlelight and let them place it wherever they want. This can make them feel they are contributing to making this ambiance. You can play soft religious music in the background and at the end of the prayer invite people to share uplifting stories.

Donor appreciation dinner

Donor appreciation is a must-have thing to run a sustainable fundraising campaign. As an organizer or member of church you have to express gratitude to the donor, hosting a dinner party is one of the ways to show some love for them. It also makes them feel valued.

Arrange a dinner party and invite regular donors to attend with their families. Fix a date, and venue, and set a common food menu that everybody would like. Create a family-friendly environment and let them enjoy themselves. As it is an appreciation dinner, so charge a small amount for this. You can charge a discount rate for children.

Bonus Idea: Consider online fundraising

Fundraising is a compulsory thing for churches or any non-profit organization to continue their vital work and bring the community together. Along with offline fundraising, every organization must need to provide an option to collect donations virtually. Online giving platforms provide churches the opportunity to make fundraising easy. When you decide to run fundraising online, the first thing you must keep in mind is choosing the right fundraising plugin. And what would be better than Paymattic to raise funds online? 

This superfast WordPress plugin lets you collect payments and donations within a minute. It enables users to accept donations via Stripe, PayPal, and 9 other payment gateways. The plugin is also enriched with a wide range of donation features, including recurring donations, a donation progress bar, currency switcher, and more. When you use Paymattic, you gain access to numerous non-profit advantages:

• Embedded eye-catchy donation form directly to your site
• Pre-built donation templates
• Support 11 payment gateway and 135+ currencies 
• Donor profiles
• Donation goal
• Advanced detail reporting 
• And more!

Get ready to utilize the church fundraising ideas

Churches and many non-profit organizations depend on donations to continue their day-to-day activities. So, implementing better ideas for fundraising is very important for the sustainable growth of non-profit organizations.

So say goodbye to boring fundraising ideas and get ready to use these simple and fun fundraising ideas for church, to do a highly engaging and successful fundraising campaign for your church. 

Hope, you find this article helpful, for any further inquiries comment below. Our team is dedicated to helping you raise funds online. Get in touch with us and let’s take your fundraising journey to the next level.

Good luck with your church.

Ciao!